Telecommunications: operator number portability and carrier pre-selection

OBJECTIVE: to guarantee equal quantitative and qualitative access to numbering resources for all market players. COMMUNITY MEASURE: Directive 98/61/EC of the European Parliament and the Council amending Directive 97/33/EC with regard to operator number portability and carrier preselection. SUBSTANCE: The main changes to the 'interconnection' directive (Directive 97/33/EC) are as follows: - the national regulatory authorities must encourage early introduction of operator number portability and ensure that this service is available by 1 January 2000 or, in countries which have been granted an additional transitional period, as soon as possible thereafter, but no later than two years after any later date agreed for full liberalisation of voice telephony services; - number portability is to apply to geographical as well as non-geographical numbers; - references to the integrated services digital network (ISDN) are included, specifying that the subscriber should have access to number portability and carrier preselection regardless of the network used; - in the interest of the consumer, national regulatory authorities may extend the obligation to provide carrier preselection with core-by-core override to organisations operating public telecommunications networks without significant market power, where this does not impose a disproportionate burden on such organisations or create a barrier to entry in the market for new operators; - deferment of the obligations arising from the directive may be requested where the Member State concerned can prove that they would impose an excessive burden on certain organisations or classes of organisation. ENTRY INTO FORCE: 3.10.1998. DEADLINE FOR TRANSPOSITION: 31.12.1998. �